Twenty Nights 'Til Morning
by SkySkinny
Summary: Maya gets kidnapped. Future fic AU. Lucaya, some Riarkle.
1. Prologue

**A/N Finally! Free time to write! I'm having one of those phases where you are perfectly happy and content, yet somehow all you can write is depressing stuff. So I'm starting this story. This is the intro- don't worry, stuff'll be explained in the following chapters.**

 **Intro**

Cold. Empty. Bleak. Life was no longer a blank canvas awaiting her masterpiece. It was four walls and her. The door was a one-way mirror. Guess which side she was on. The girl in her reflection stared back at her with dirty clothes and unwashed skin. Her hair was barely distinguishable from something you'd find in a shower drain. The bags under her eyes showed the countless sleepless nights she had endured. But her eyes were the focal point of the picture she saw. Jaded. Dead. Dangerous. Somehow, they betrayed her brokenness most of all.

A pounding sound echoed through the hall outside. The girl's eyes hardened as she watched herself involuntarily step away from the door. Her body was screaming, pleading for mercy, any escape at all from what was to come. But her eyes told a different story. They would put up a fight until her last breath. She was dangerous. Not how she used to be, willing to do anything for her friends…. A humorless smile hinted at her lips. The word "friend" was dead to her. Now she was insane. As the door clicked and slid open, her lips curled into a crazed grin. She forced her legs into motion, lurching towards the door with her last reserves of adrenaline. She would escape this hellhole if it was the last thing she did.

But her body was weak. Her broken mind had lost all sense of reality, but her broken body was feeling it in all its starved, dehydrated, sleep-deprived glory. Her muscles gave out time after time, but she forced them to move. One more time. Just one more time. Over and over again. Her foot landed at the wrong angle and suddenly she was stumbling, crashing to the floor. She couldn't get up. Her body was out of energy. She felt herself being thrown back into her cell. She heard the guards laughing at her pitiful attempt at escape as their footsteps faded away down the hall.

After what felt like forever, she pushed herself up until she was sitting, staring at the innocent glass of water the guards had left in her cell. Her daily drug. The only water she ever got. She needed that water, but she knew the drug in it would cause insomnia. Still, she would die without water. She would also die if she didn't sleep. She couldn't drink it. Regardless of her wishes, her parched tongue and cracked lips took control and gulped down the water. She instantly regretted it.

The buzzing feeling began to pound in her head. All she wanted to do was sleep. Her vision was blurry. She didn't have the energy to stay awake much longer. She was off-balance, even while sitting, but she couldn't sleep. Her vision was getting darker. Intense pain throbbed behind her eyes. But she couldn't sleep. Her hands were shaking from fatigue as she fell backwards, head hitting the floor with a dull thud. She was seeing double. The ceiling was pink and green and yellow. Spots danced in front of her eyes. But still she couldn't sleep.

Hours later, the guards returned. They threw the cup away and chuckled at her desperate stupidity. She heard every word, somehow barely coherent yet still conscious. Tears slipped from her eyes, trailing down her skin and disappearing into her hair. But still, she couldn't sleep.


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N So... A lot more fluff this chapter. It'll work up to the prologue in later chapters, then plot twists galore. I finally have time to write, not like last time when I thought I did. I didn't, obviously. I am so sorry about the wait, and all reviews, comments and criticism are completely welcome. Thank you to all of the wonderful people who have liked, followed and commented on this story, along with my others– you guys are amazing. Now on to the chapter!**

"Lucas? Where are we?"

"The sewer."

"Wow. Never would have guessed. But seriously, where?"

"Around Cyprus Avenue, I think."

"So not even close yet."

"I'm afraid not."

A large drop of water landed on the back of Maya's neck with a wet plop.

"Why did we have to take the sewer, again?" She asked, cringing.

"Because we have to end up in the prison basement, and this is the only way in that's not under surveillance by a dozen guards." Lucas rolled his eyes.

Maya huffed in response.

"Come on, Maya. I told you to eat something before we left. Now you're gonna be grumpy for the rest of the assignment."

"I am NOT hungry! I'm just annoyed that I have to spend three hours trudging to and from a prison, which adds up to six hours, which is a quarter of my day, and since half if my day is spent sleeping, I have to spend half of my waking hours in a sewer with Mr. I'm Too Important To Talk To Maya, My New Mission Partner Who I Don't Think Is Deserving Of My Company. Hey, is that a granola bar in your pocket?"

Lucas turned around.

"First of all, it's three hours round trip–"

"Not at the rate you're going." Maya muttered under her breath. Lucas turned and continued their trek through the New York City sewage tunnel.

"–Second, I'm just not used to working with you yet, and third, this is my food that I brought for me in case I got hungry."

"Selfish. Just selfish."

Lucas sighed and held out his granola bar.

"Fine, take it. But if you take this, you're admitting I was right."

"Whatever floats your boat." Maya grinned and grabbed the bar, tearing into it like she hadn't eaten in days. Lucas beheld the scene in astonishment.

"Did you just eat that whole granola bar in less than three seconds?"

"Shut up."

"After a breakfast of twelve pancakes–"

"They were miniscule!"

"A whole bottle of maple syrup–"

"Also miniscule!"

"Three fruit bowls and five strips of bacon!"

"What, so are you tracking the amount of food I eat now?"

"I thought you'd set a world record!"

"Oh, well then thank you, I truly appreciate the compliment." Maya responded wryly.

"Hey, if someone can eat that much and still look like that, then you've got some serious metabolism, Shortstack."

"Shortstack? I hardly think twelve pancakes qualifies as 'short,' but if you say so…"

"I meant you, Maya."

She was so glad that he couldn't see her blush in the dark tunnel.

Little did she know, he did see. And he was as well.

A subtle buzzing sounded from the speaker in Maya's ear.

"Marmalade, this is Fartface, I repeat, Marmalade, this is Fartface." A bout of hysterical laughter could be heard in the background, from whom Maya knew beyond a doubt was Riley.

"Riley, I told you no on the codenames. No matter how much you have Fartface wrapped around your finger. It's silly." Maya scolded.

"I think she's laughing too hard to take you seriously right now. Try again when you get back." Farkle acknowledged.

"Alright. Are we close?"

"Very. Take a hard left at the next intersection, and go about four hundred feet. You'll see… I'm not sure what exactly, but some sort of door or entrance into the basement. From there, you're on your own. I don't have a map of the basement."

"Thanks. Talk to you later, Farkle."

"Bye, Marmalade." The line went dead.

"Take a left here." Maya instructed Lucas as they approached the intersection.

"You ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be."

They turned the corner.


	3. Chapter 2

**A/N Okay, I lied. I have no time to write. Ever. Sorry! I'm quitting my current stories for now, because I'm not really into them anymore. When I have some better stuff written I'll post it, but for now, there's not gonna be much action here. Again, sorry guys.**


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